Text Size

BOSTON’S ‘MEDICAL MECCA’ AIDED ATTACK RESPONSE — Monday’s gruesome attack could’ve been a whole lot deadlier if it weren’t for the wealth of world-class medical facilities just a short drive from the marathon finish line, experts told POLITICO. And that raises an important question as policymakers draw lessons from the tragedy: What if this had happened somewhere else? Only a handful of cities have the medical capacity to handle a deluge of complex blast injuries, even as Iraq- and Afghanistan-trained surgeons have begun bringing their expertise home. “It’s very important that people not high-five one another and say this is how good we are,” said Art Kellermann, an emergency medicine expert and policy analyst for Rand Corp. “It could’ve been a different story. … We’re still struggling to get America’s hospitals to be properly organized … to handle a mass casualty event.” http://politico.pro/11pa4CF

FDA: NO GENERIC OXYCONTIN WITHOUT ANTI-CRUSH, ANTI-ABUSE FEATURES — Drug manufacturers hopeful to chip away at OxyContin’s share of the pain management market lost a big battle at the FDA on Tuesday, when the agency ruled it wouldn’t back generic versions of the pills that don’t deter abuse. The ruling ensures that Purdue Pharma, with $2.8 billion in annual OxyContin sales, maintains its exclusive hold on the market, perhaps for years. Per Pro’s Brett Norman: “The FDA also approved a labeling change for the newer version of OxyContin, allowing the manufacturer to tout its abuse-deterrent qualities for the first time. FDA had been reluctant to approve the labeling claim because of limited evidence that reformulation effectively deters abuse, but the agency concluded that it can at least be ‘expected’ to.” http://politico.pro/14u0q6V

--Second-term Rep. Bill Keating (D-Mass.) who’s pressed for anti-abuse requirements for addictive pain medication, said the news was a bright spot during a difficult time for his state. “It is not every day that you can say one decision will save lives, but I truly believe this will,” he said. “It is a welcome first step in an ongoing process. … I am happy to see that the FDA has chosen to implement part of my legislation.”

--BILL WOULD BLOCK ‘PROVISIONAL’ IMMIGRANTS FROM OBAMACARE — Undocumented immigrants on a path to legal status won’t, apparently, be on the path to Obamacare anytime soon. http://politico.pro/11pYibm

REPUBLICANS LAMBASTE FDA FOR COMPOUNDING OVERSIGHT — Republicans hammered the FDA on Tuesday for what they said was a failure to clamp down on the New England Compounding Center, the Massachusetts-based drug producer linked to last year’s fatal meningitis outbreak. http://politi.co/15ePI3i

ABORTION RIGHTS GROUPS SUE TO OVERTURN ARKANSAS 12-WEEK BAN — Making good on threats, abortion rights groups sued in federal court Tuesday to overturn a new Arkansas law restricting most abortions after 12 weeks. “The suit — filed on behalf of two Arkansas doctors who provide abortions in the state — is aiming to prevent the Arkansas ban from ever going into effect. The law is set to be implemented on July 18, 90 days after the Legislature is scheduled to adjourn.” http://politi.co/15ePGZ6

LEW OPENING DOOR TO MEDICAL DEVICE TAX CHANGES? — Congress may not agree, but the Obama administration isn’t backing down from its defense of the Affordable Care Act’s medical device tax. But Treasury Secretary Jack Lew suggested Tuesday that there could be a better way. “Maybe there’s a way of looking at it differently than the way it was designed,” Lew said at a hearing on the administration’s budget proposal. “The idea was not to target startups.” Lew called the estimated $29 billion-a-year tax an important part of the health law’s financing scheme and said it would help keep up with the increasing cost of advanced medical technology.

AP: OBAMACARE MEANS MAJOR CHANGES TO ADDICTION SERVICES — The onset of Obamacare’s major coverage expansions could help 3 million to 5 million people with drug and alcohol addiction get coverage — potentially doubling the number of people who seek treatment, The Associated Press’s Carla Johnson reports. That means a once-stigmatized aspect of health care will suddenly become highly visible and mainstream for the first time. “But those eager for a new chance at sobriety may be surprised by the reality behind the promise,” Johnson reports. “The system for treating substance abuse — now largely publicly funded and run by counselors with limited medical training — is small and already full to overflowing in many places. In more than two-thirds of the states, treatment clinics are already at or approaching 100 percent capacity.” http://bit.ly/13gRMnF

REID EXPECTS VOTE ON MENTAL HEALTH AMENDMENT TO GUN BILL — A mental health amendment to the Senate’s gun bill could be on Wednesday’s agenda. Majority Leader Harry Reid said an amendment from Sens. Tom Harkin and Lamar Alexander would be voted on, along with more contentious provisions such as background checks. The Harkin-Alexander package addresses awareness, prevention and early identification of mental health conditions through health and education programs. A separate mental health proposal by Sen. Debbie Stabenow and others to expand funding for mental health community clinics was not included in the set of amendments going to the floor Wednesday.

-- The American Academy of Pediatrics, joined by nearly two-dozen public health and safety advocacy groups, wrote to the Senate on Tuesday urging members to “make addressing the health effects of gun violence a central component of the ongoing debate.” “Firearm injuries are one of the top three causes of death among youth, killing twice as many children as cancer, five times as many as heart disease, and 15 times as many as infections,” the groups wrote. http://bit.ly/ZZ3zCU

AHA: STUDY DREW UNFAIR LINK BETWEEN MEDICAL ERRORS, FINANCIAL GAIN — The American Hospital Association is aggressively rejecting the conclusion of a study, set to be published today in the Journal of the American Medical Association, that describes a revenue windfall for hospitals when surgeries go awry. The study suggests that windfall is a reason some hospitals haven’t adopted certain quality reforms. But the hospitals’ pay and decisions about reforms to improve quality of care aren’t linked, said Nancy Foster, vice president of quality and patient safety for AHA. “We’ve seen that [hospitals] may experience financial setbacks as a result of changes they make, but they make the right decision anyway because that’s what drew them to health care,” Foster said. “When hospital leaders and their medical staff and the clinicians … engage in patient care, they want to do the right thing for patients.” The study: http://politico.pro/11oqOtH. ICYMI, the initial Pro report: http://politico.pro/XPUZMu

AMGEN SETTLES KICKBACK CLAIM FOR $24.9M — Amgen has agreed to pay $24.9 million to settle a claim that it paid pharmacists to provide its drugs to patients, the Department of Justice announced Tuesday. A DOJ release says that the drugmaker was accused of paying kickbacks to long-term care pharmacy providers for ‘interchange’ programs designed to switch Medicare and Medicaid patients from a competitor drug to Aranesp, an anemia medicine. The payments were made in the form of performance-based rebates tied to market share or volume thresholds, the government alleged. The announcement: http://1.usa.gov/1111dWp

DRUG REBATE BILL INTRODUCED – About two dozen Democrats in the House and Senate introduced legislation to give rebates to the government on drugs used by dual eligibles. It would save more than $140 billion. “ It would responsibly help to reduce the deficit — without impacting Medicare beneficiaries — by making sure drug companies don’t get more than they’re due,” said Jay Rockefeller, one of the key sponsors. The statement: http://politico.pro/15diQru

FAMILIES USA: 600,000+ IN VA. CAN GET PREMIUM TAX CREDITS — A new Families USA report finds that, come 2014, more than 624,000 Virginia residents will be able to get premium tax credits to purchase coverage through the health exchange. The report says the majority of these Virginians will be part of families with incomes between two and four times the federal poverty level. The report: http://bit.ly/15cXt9T

WHAT WE’RE READING, by Jennifer Haberkorn

A key source for the Wall Street report before the MA rates were announced on April 1 was a former health care aide to Sen. Chuck Grassley, the WSJ reports. http://on.wsj.com/15jFZca

The United Union of Roofers, Waterproofers and Allied Workers has reversed its support of the health law amid concern that it would result in members losing their existing health plans, the WSJ reports. http://on.wsj.com/11qGInm

Don Berwick, whose support for the National Health Service might have lost him his CMS appointment, is now leading a safety review for the National Health Service, The Guardian reports. http://bit.ly/11dZw6L

In an editorial, the Orlando Sentinel urges the Florida state Legislature to support expanding the Medicaid program. http://thesent.nl/10dxuhL

Kermit Gosnell's Philadelphia trial is focusing on the immigrant patients that he attempted to treat, The Washington Post reports. http://wapo.st/XFqsPf

** WANT MORE NEWS? For breaking news and customized alerts on defense, energy, financial services, health care, tax, technology and transportation throughout the day, you should GO PRO. With sector-specific coverage, early-bird editions of POLITICO's must-read morning newsletters, customized instant alerts sent to your mobile device and special subscriber-only events, you won't miss a beat. See what you've been missing: www.politicopro.com **